Beechcraft Corp. completed the inaugural flight of the first production AT-6 multimission light aircraft Tuesday morning as employees, dignitaries and others watched.

Test pilot Lionel Alford does a pre-flight check before embarking on the first flight of the first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
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Beechcraft test pilots prepare for the first flight of the first production AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Test pilot Lionel Alford does a pre-flight check before embarking on the first flight of the first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Test pilot Lionel Alford does a pre-flight check before embarking on the first flight of the first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Beechcraft employees line up to watch the first test flight of the first production AT-6, the attack version of the T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Test pilot Lionel Alford does a pre-flight check before embarking on the first flight of the first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Beechcraft test pilot Lionel Alford. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

The first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, makes its inaugural flight on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

The first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, taxis after its inaugural test flight on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Beechcraft employees watch as the first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, taxis after its inaugural test flight on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

The first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, makes its inaugural flight on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

One of two Beechcraft test pilots gives a thumbs up after the inaugural test flight of its first production AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

The first production Beechcraft AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, after its inaugural test flight on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
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Beechcraft CEO Bill Boisture takes a photo after the first test flight of the company's first production AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Two Beechcraft test pilots shake hands after the inaugural test flight of its first production AT-6, the attack version of its T-6 trainer, on Tuesday. (Aug 20, 2013)
The Wichita Eagle

Beechcraft Corp. completed the inaugural flight of the first production AT-6 multimission light aircraft Tuesday morning as employees, dignitaries and others watched.

Pilots Lionel Alford and J.D. O’Malley started the engine, taxied to the runway and took to the skies.

“It is a fantastic airplane to fly,” Alford said after landing. “We call it care-free. You just set up the airplane; you’re ready to go. You fly it. It tells you if there’s something wrong with it. It flies beautifully.”

The company has built two prototypes of the AT-6, a light attack version of the T-6 trainer used to train Navy and Air Force pilots. The test airplanes have logged 1,600 hours of flight time.

The airplane flying Tuesday was the first to come down the production line with the trainers.

Beechcraft is offering the AT-6 to U.S. partner nations that need attack air support.

It can be used for border and maritime patrol and on attack missions with lower costs, company officials said.

“The AT-6 capabilities are robust,” said Russ Bartlett, president of Beechcraft Defense Co., a division of Beechcraft Corp. “This light attack aircraft is outfitted with state-of-the-art equipment and avionics that will provide partnering nations with a proven air platform and weapons systems that are already in use by air forces around the world.”

The plane is capable of firing laser-guided bombs and missiles.

A camera placed on the bottom of the plane can “see” 30 miles away and can help guide a bomb to a precise target. The plane can fly high and out of range of small missiles launched from the ground, Alford said.

“It’s a pretty effective weapon even though it’s in a pretty small package,” Alford said of the small airplane.

The flight of the first production AT-6 highlights the efforts of Beechcraft employees involved in the plane’s design, development and production, said Bill Boisture, Beechcraft CEO.

“It’s an exciting day for the people of this company,” Boisture said.

The plane is a key part of the company’s future.

Beechcraft has seen a growing interest in the AT-6 internationally, Boisture said.

He expects the company to secure a launch customer for the aircraft by the end of the year.

“It’s a bit of a race of which one (potential customer) it will be,” Boisture said.

Going forward, Boisture said he expects the company to deliver 20 to 24 of the planes a year for the next several years.

Earlier this year, Beechcraft Corp.’s protest of a high-stakes Air Force contract for light support airplanes awarded to Sierra Nevada Corp. and its partner, Embraer, was rejected.